Pursuant to the authority granted by vote of the District at its Annual District Meeting of 1989, Article 14 and pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws (M.G.L.) Chapter 41, Section 69A, M.G.L. Chapter 40, Section 41A, M.G.L. Chapter 40, Section 39A, and the provisions of Chapter 100 of the Acts of 1926 and related authority, the Board of Water Commissioners of the Sudbury Water District has established the following governing provisions:

SUDBURY WATER DISTRICT BY-LAWS

Article 1 – Annual Meeting

A meeting of the voters of the Sudbury Water District of Sudbury shall be held each year in Sudbury, on the third Tuesday in May at seven o’clock in the evening, for the purpose of electing officers and for the transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting. For purposes of election, polls shall open at 3:00 p.m. prior to the commencement of the Annual Meeting and polls shall remain open until 7:00 p.m. at which time the election results shall be determined. Whenever the aforesaid day is a holiday, this meeting shall be called for the day next following.

Article II – Special Meeting

Special meetings may be called by a majority of the Board of Water Commissioners by a warrant directed to the Clerk of the District, or upon petition of ten or more legal voters of the District as provided in Section 8, Chapter 100, of the Acts of 1934.

Article III – Notice of Meetings

The Clerk of the District shall post notices and warrants of every annual and special meeting electronically on the District’s website and in paper form in at least three public places within the District and shall give or cause to be given by delivering at each dwelling or mailing to each householder in the District a notice of said meetings, and any associated election, the times and location of the election, the locations of public places where notices and warrants are posted and the District web address where copies may be obtained at least fourteen days before the time appointed thereof.

Article IV – Seal

The Commissioners may adopt an appropriate seal for the District.

Article V – Officials

At each Annual Meeting the voters of the District shall elect one Commissioner for a term of three years and for a term of one year, a Treasurer, a Moderator and a Clerk whose term may have been completed as of the Annual District Meeting. The Commissioners shall annually elect one of their members as Chairman.

Article VI – Duties of the Clerk

The Clerk of the District shall keep full and accurate records of all meetings of the District. The Clerk shall, if and when directed by the Commissioners, give all notices of meetings of the District as provided in Articles II and III, as well as all other notices required.

Article VII – Proceedings

The proceedings at all meetings of the District shall be governed by the parliamentary rules observed at Town Meetings in Sudbury with the following extensions and clarification:

Section 1:
The Moderator shall, at the time and place appointed, call the meeting to order, and forthwith proceed to read the call for the meeting, and the return of the person or persons who served it.

Section 2:
The powers and duties of the presiding officer, not especially provided for by law, or by these by-laws, shall be determined by the generally accepted rules and practice, so far as they are adapted to the conditions and powers of the District.

Section 3:
Fifteen voters present at a duly called District meeting shall constitute a quorum.

Section 4:
Every person speaking shall address the chair.

Section 5:
No person shall speak more than twice upon any question without first obtaining the consent of the meeting, except to correct an error, or make an explanation, nor until all others who have not spoken upon the question, and desire to do so, shall have an opportunity.

Section 6:
All motions shall be reduced to writing before being submitted to the meeting, if required by the presiding officer or clerk.

Section 7:
No vote fixing the time for closing a ballot shall be reconsidered after said ballot shall have begun; but an extension of time may be had by vote without reconsideration.

Section 8:
When a question is under debate, motions may be received to adjourn, to lay the matter on the table, to move the previous question, to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a time certain, and to amend; which several motions shall have precedence in the order in which they are herein enumerated, and the first three shall be decided without debate.

Section 9:
No motion to reconsider a matter already acted on shall be in order except by the approval of a two-thirds consent at the same session or that in which the matter was heard and voted.

Article VIII – Amendment of By-Laws

These By-Laws may be amended, altered, or repealed at any meeting of the voters of the District by a majority of the voters present and voting.

Article IX – Financial Year

The financial year of the District shall begin July 1st and end on the following June 30th.

Article X – Election of Officers

A candidate for election to any District office must be a qualified legal voter of the Water District. The District Clerk shall prepare suitable ballots, bearing the names of the candidates properly qualified and these ballots shall be prepared in time for use at said Annual Meeting.

Section 1:
The definition of a qualified legal voter of the District shall have the same meaning and shall be deemed to be synonymous with references to a legal voter of the District, a qualified voter within the District, voters living within the District, a legal voter of the Sudbury Water District, or to a member of the District and shall be defined as: (i) a registered voter within the Town of Sudbury who is (ii) a resident whose primary place of residence is within the geographical confines of the Sudbury Water District (iii) with said property being serviced by the District. For the purposes of determining whether said property is being serviced by the District said property must be connected to the Water District and must be in use by virtue of the existence of an active account for service and with service actually being provided by the District.

Section 2:
All elections to any office in the District shall be by means of a printed ballot. This ballot shall be caused to be printed by the Commissioners acting as election officers from information furnished to them by the Clerk of the District as provided hereinafter.

Section 3:
No person’s name shall be printed on the ballot unless he or someone on his behalf has submitted nomination papers signed by ten qualified voters of the District, setting forth the office for which he is a candidate and containing a statement signed by the candidate that he will accept the office, if elected. Nomination papers of a candidate for office of the District shall be filed with the Clerk of the District in accordance with General Laws, subsequent submission to the Registrar of Voters shall be in accordance with General Laws.

Section 4:
Nothing herein shall be construed as preventing a vote by stickers or writing in the name of a candidate, all as provided in the General Laws, except that not such sticker or write-in candidate shall be deemed to be elected unless he has received 100 valid votes.

Section 5:
The Commissioners, acting as elected officers, shall prepare as of twenty (20) days prior to the Annual Election, a list of eligible voters from the official voting list of the Town of Sudbury as of that time. This list will remain closed until after the Annual Meeting of the District. The list will then be reviewed and revised for all subsequent Special Meetings, up to the day of the Special Meeting. These lists will then be used to determine the right of any person to vote at any election or any meeting of the District.

Section 6:
All candidates elected to offices in the District will be sworn to the performance of their duties by the Clerk of the District, except in the case of the Clerk, who will be sworn by any of the Commissioners. The Clerk will record the facts in the minutes of the meeting.

Section 7:
Elections and Nominations of District officers will be conducted in accordance with Chapters 56, inclusive of the General Laws so far as applicable, except as otherwise provided in Sections 114 to 117 of Chapter 41 of the General Laws, inclusive, and except as otherwise provided by the District By-Laws.

Article XI – Non-Voter Attending and Addressing a Meeting

Upon the request of a legal voter of the Sudbury Water District that a non-voter be allowed to attend or address any legally called meeting, a two-thirds vote of those present and voting shall determine the granting of such a request.

RESOURCES

The Sudbury Water District is an independent municipal entity established by an Act of the Massachusetts Legislature in 1934.
It is separate and distinct from the Town of Sudbury, and is not affiliated with the Town of Sudbury’s Department of Public Works.